Food matters to people, be it a guest staying at the hotel or a casual diner. And chefs have perfected the maths of delivering a complete experience to generate greater footfalls and hence revenue - By Babita Krishnan
he Indian food and beverage (F&B) service industry is one of the most vibrant industries that has seen unprecedented growth in the recent past and continues to expand rapidly. This can be attributed to the changing demographics, increase in disposable incomes, urbanisation and growth of organised retail. The F&B service market, if reports are to be believed,
is worth Rs2,04,438 crore and is expected to reach Rs3,80,000 crore by 2017.
With a well-travelled global generation of affluent travellers, new and trendy food concepts are a rage in the business. People have become more discerning and have expanded their tastes to regional, local, authentic and international flavours as well. Today, F&B offerings in India have evolved and are fast making a mark for themselves in the global F&B arena, too. Besides just a menu’s diversity in taste, style and origins, there is a plethora of factors that act as product differentiators – ambience, quality of service delivered, value for money, etc. Another aspect of the Indian F&B industry that has witnessed a radical change over the years is the design element. With more emphasis on aesthetics of the place, the ambience and atmosphere hold equal importance.
"The integration of all these factors holistically is what develops a brand recall for the consumers. With this is mind, The St. Regis brand is committed to delivering exceptional experiences with the combination of classic sophistication and a modern sensibility, where signature rituals create emotional connections with guests," says chef David Watson, executive chef, The St. Regis, Mumbai. The F&B sector has evolved over the past decade, giving rise to exciting new concepts
in F&B offerings and new and innovative service elements. " An increase in disposable income and, in turn, a rise in discretionary spend has resulted in some old paradigms shifting. Dining-out has evolved from being an occasion-led activity to an occasion in itself," shares chef Mukul Agarwal, executive chef, Hilton Jaipur.
"The advances in technology have affected every facet of our lives, and transformed the food and beverage industry as well. Another very critical change is the dramatic shift in the Indian palate. Today’s consumers are much more educated and sophisticated, and have come to expect the same fine dining standards experienced in London, Paris or New York right here," reveals Chef Avijit Ghosh, corporate chef, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts.
Restaurant layouts and seating has changed from traditional to free style, there has been an upsurge of restaurants/eating places that are casual and fun. "Customers today like quick bites, finger/comfort food and rustic or trendy presentations," says chef Rajeev Janveja, corporate chef, The Lemon Tree Hotels. Chef Rohit Gambhir, executive chef, The Oberoi, New Delhi,
accepts that the emergence of standalone restaurants is offering stiff competition to the high-end restaurant
market, which, "until a few years ago, was dominated by luxury hotels," he says. "The pop-up food festivals are also changing the game a lot, allowing consumers to experience food from different restaurants at the same place," adds chef Girish Krishnan, executive chef, JW Marriott, New Delhi Aerocity.
Over the years, the F&B scenario has evolved a lot and for the better. The most noteworthy is the availability of good quality ingredients from all over the globe, allowing chefs to experiment with ingredients and innovate new recipes. Guests are now well-travelled and open to experiment with food inspiring chefs to think out of the box.
TRENDS
Some of the significant new food trends include the ‘healthification’ of menus like never before. Super foods and to a great extent, even organic food are no longer just health fads. Another trend that is emerging is that chefs are no more falling into the trap of fusion but are exploring their roots and presenting culinary traditions in a modern manner instead. Agreeing with this belief, Chef Natarajan, corporate chef, southern region, Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces, adds, "Adding a
dash of entertainment element and experience to encourage the customers to spend more time and visit more often, thereby, increasing the average spend per consumer is a global concept which is fast catching up in India. Stronger distribution and supply system and global commerce has enabled exotic ingredients to be made available for the Indian palate at a sustained
cost. This has not only made the Indian consumer more aware of the global food ingredients/concepts, but has also expanded to a culture of fusion cuisine and culture of comfort food where a particular cuisine has been wonderfully crafted by the culinary teams to suit and be appreciated by the local audience. Some of the examples would be the vegetarian sushi, spicy
oriental food, global grills and tapas, amalgamation of Indian spices in fine dining or presentation of Indian
food to the global consumers to let them enjoy the taste, however with a milder spice levels."
According to Chef Janveja, freestyle plating, smaller portions and comfort food are the three key food trends worldwide. Chef Gambhir adds artisanal breads, fermented foods and cold pressed juices to the list as well.
Changes in lifestyle and eating patterns are also fuelling new trends. Nutritious and healthy foods on the go, for example, are becoming very important, especially for those with hectic schedules. Dessert trends, too, continue to grow and hold a special place on menus, from adding vegetable ingredients to offering gluten-free options to hybrid desserts. "Re-invented classics will continue to reign supreme and chefs will continue to experiment with hybrid desserts, which combine different types of desserts," says chef Ghosh. "We have introduced the ‘McClair’ at The Leela Palace Bangalore which is a combination of an éclair and a macaroon, with a choice of filing like pistachio, berries, or single origin chocolates. The Indian palette is so sophisticated now that it needed no introduction and was an instant hit," he reveals.
Each country has its own unique set of spices, ingredients, produce and recipe sets that are made to please the local and international palates and the diversity in India's food palate has always fascinated chefs. "The flavours here are bold and tantalising but yet evolving, when it comes to international cuisine and exotic dining options. However, I have seen that people in India are increasingly receptive of international flavours and vice versa, which has led to regional cuisines stepping out of the ambit of geographical constraints and becoming more prominent in newer Indian restaurants,"
says chef Watson. Guests are more willing to experiment with different cuisines and this has also increased their frequency of eating out.
VISIBILITY
Social media is becoming a great influence and no prudent restaurateur can afford to ignore it. It is however a double edged sword: on one end it allows establishments to reach out and connect with their guests with greater ease and it simultaneously provides a huge platform to both a delighted or irate guest to leave a comment for public viewing. It has inevitably become
a major touch point for people to gain information about offerings, promotions, prices as well as reviews and recommendations of other people.
"Promotions do enable any establishment to get noticed especially startups, however sustainability depends on the consistency of quality and positive word of mouth. Technology plays the biggest role here as online reviews, ratings and social media recommendations have a faster and stronger impact rather than any campaign which looks like a paid advertisement to the extremely aware and perceptive consumer," says chef Natarajan.
The relevance of social media is growing exponentially, particularly with the millennials. This offers a quick engagement platform that allows to connect directly with a wider audience and share information. Engagement and information translates into additional footfalls and greater revenues. "The emergence of F&B apps is fast changing the way business is done. Right from booking a table, earning freebies, leaving a comment, food delivery, liking or not liking a post are all just a touch away," observes chef Gambhir. Though a firm believer of word-of-mouth marketing and, serving quality food, chef Krishnan admits that social media has made things easier as awareness is faster through facebook, twitter, Instagram, etc. "It’s the need of the hour and has been helpful in reaching out to wider audience," he says.
"At the Leela, we have seen much higher engagement rates on social media, whenever we promote our F&B offerings. These platforms have helped our properties engage with our over 1.3 lakh fans, and also connect
with potential guests across the country," shares chef Ghosh. Promotions are required but must be relevant and aligned with the brand. They need to be well thought through and apart from bringing additional footfalls and revenues, they must work to further enhance the brand.
INNOVATIONS
Interactive buffets and kitchens were an innovation that took the F&B space by storm. While it increases the opportunity to communicate and engage with the guests, it offers a more enriching dining experience that often engenders loyalty. "At Lemon Tree, we have focused on enhancing the offerings on buffet. To drive restaurant revenues, we have tied up with reputed food portals and routinely engage with food bloggers as well to spread the word around. We are also focusing on banqueting to up revenues," reveals chef Janveja. Hilton Jaipur also frequently updates the offerings to attract guests. "Customising items on the menu according to customer needs and preferences and introducing takeaway options are some innovations introduced," adds chef Agarwal.
The Leela takes great pride in its live desserts where the guests hand-pick their elements and chef assembles it according to their preference and individual tastes. "We have also introduced a ‘Cake Shop’ at our Leela properties, where we take pride in using only the best quality ingredients, from freshly baked breads, pastries, cakes to macaroons. We also use the world’s
best chocolates (Valrhona from France, Callebaut from Belgium) or bespoke single-origin quality chocolates from Europe. Our guests recognise and relish the quality, and keep coming back for more," quips chef Ghosh.
Chef Natarajan believes in re-inventing home-style food and regional concepts and exploring forgotten recipes and cuisines which have a novelty factor. Innovative dining concepts catering to specific segments, for example active food, diabetic-friendly food for the on-the-go working crowd are also some of the things introduced by him. "Strategic pricing and revenue management concepts help to fill up the low performing periods and maximise on the peak demand periods," he says.
On the other hand, the menus at The St. Regis Mumbai are curated to match dynamic trends and changing tastes of consumers, delivering a wide range of options right from easy-to-order tapas or bite-sized appetizers as well as elaborate buffets for larger groups. "The corporate rates and our Liquid Buffet (that is specially curated for this audience) have become extremely popular," says chef Watson, pointing out that good value and good food are the bottom line of all innovative strategies
that would successfully help in increasing revenues.
BOTTOM LINE
Increased competition has lead to a significant scarcity of trained manpower, which has resulted in an increase in the cost of recruitment, training and development. "The proliferation of options has necessitated greater investment in the development and implementation of concepts, generating awareness, interest and loyalty, and remaining relevant," rues chef Agarwal. The dynamic nature of the F&B business in recent years has made establishing and running a concept more difficult in terms of operational efficiency where the prices are stressed due to the increasing customer awareness and demands. The cost of hiring internationally talented manpower and exotic ingredients as well as introducing innovative themes/concepts in the
dining along with a focus on ambience/entertainment has further put a dent on the profitability ratios for F&B outlets. On the positive side, this has also led to a lot of young entrepreneurs investing in joint ventures as capital has become easier to attain. The business model has also changed with restaurants not looking at a lifecycle beyond a decade, leading to more versatile concepts emerging which can be changed with minimal investment within a short timeframe. However,
chef Natarajan stresses that brand strength is a globally important aspect to prosper in the F&B business.
"This makes use of technology/affiliation with grading systems like ISO/HACCP or star ratings that are extremely important for any outlet to prove its worth in the market and establish a higher level of brand trust with the consumer," he adds.
In keeping with new and trendy food concepts, The St. Regis Mumbai constantly modifies its menus and offerings to meet the changing demands of guests. Experimenting with new concepts and curating menus specifically based on themes or geographical regions are some of the initiatives that allow chef Watson to "surprise and delight" the patrons and those willing to
experiment beyond the standard menus.
Revenues from F&B at The Oberoi, New Delhi have seen a consistent increase, year on year. "In fact, we are amongst the highest revenue generators in food and beverage space in the country. The use of technology, too, has played its role in helping us connect with our guests like never before. It helps us reach out to them and spread awareness about our new initiatives. This eventually translates into incremental revenue," shares chef Gambhir.
F&B outlets need to constantly come up with different and unique initiatives to not just create their own identity but also to have increased footfalls at the venue which will have a significantly positive impact on the bottom line.
CHALLENGES
Fine dining, which was once associated primarily with luxury hotels, has now been extended to include standalone
restaurants. The competition is no longer limited to a few restaurants among hotels. Today, trends in the F&B industry are changing at lightning pace, giving little time to make well-informed strategy decisions and forcing one to be diligent and observant to stay on top of the game. Consumers have become more discerning and are constantly looking for new and creative
options that give them the best value for money.
Hence, one needs to constantly evaluate new additions, watch pricing strategies as well as the quality.
For chefs, availability of quality ingredients continues to be a major challenge. "One has to deal with import laws and very high price points that make it feasible only to a niche, elite market," says chef Gambhir.
Also, the industry continues to remain labour intensive where, despite the use of technology and machinery, the technical ability, skills and human touch cannot be compromised. Increasing the price of the menu periodically or pushing the team to upsell to improve the APC, therefore, are no longer the most successful strategies for growth in the F&B business.
BEST PRACTICES
The most important aspect of being in this industry is to accept and adapt to what suits customers best. The endeavour is to create a memorable experience for the guests and this can be assured only when both the FOH and BOH are in sync.
The Oberoi group invests in employees through constant and continuous training of the team such that they are always clued in with the latest global trends in food and beverage. "We recently concluded a four-day extensive F&B conclave -The Golden Crust, wherein, we invited the best pastry chefs and bakers from USA, Switzerland and Germany to train a team of 40 pastry
chefs from all hotels of The Oberoi group," chef Gambhir shares. When it comes to food, the vision at Oberoi is to provide food that is delicious, authentic and consistent and for service the straight forward mantra is to provide efficient, personalised and non-intrusive service, he says. Leela, too, believes in continuous training and development to enhance and upgrade the quality of products and service standards. Apart from that, according to chef Ghosh, choosing the finest ingredients and improvising on cooking styles to maintain a consistency across the group is also insisted upon.
With more than 4,500 hotels and over 2,500 restaurants and bars in 97 countries, Hilton Worldwide endeavours to inspire guests to explore the many flavours across the world. "We are driven by a sense of place, inspired by the rich culinary heritage of communities within which we operate and influenced by local flavours, traditions and seasonal ingredients. For
instance, Hilton Chennai offers delicious Chettinad chocolates; the buffet at Hilton Mumbai often includes a section with the best of Mumbai street food, etc.," says chef Agarwal. A similar attempt at The St. Regis Mumbai has also been fairly successful. "Some of our most successful practices widely appreciated but guests have been the various regional food festivals curated at Seven Kitchens, our lavish and visually appealing banquet spreads, the menus that are set according to different cuisines on a daily basis, customised variants of our signature Afternoon tea menu and many more," explains chef Watson, adding that, a major practice followed is seeking constructive feedback and pro-actively acting on it. "Each appreciation and feedback received is important because it helps our teams better themselves at whatever they do, which
in turn helps us reach The St. Regis practice of Beyond Expectation," he says.
The buffets at The Lemon Tree hotels are designed to be value-for-money and anything missing on the buffet is served from the kitchen, says chef Janveja. "To add a touch of quirkiness and humour, fun mats (table mats carrying jokes) have been placed in our multi-cuisine restaurants to make the place more interesting. We also actively hire persons with disabilities in
kitchens and F&B service, who work shoulder to shoulder with our fully-abled employees. This, too, has had a positive impact on teams and got us appreciation from guests," shares the corporate chef with obvious pride.
Sharing knowledge and helping each other is the core strength of Taj Hotels feels chef Natarajan, which eventually benefits the guests thereby resulting in higher growth. "We truly follow Atithi Devo Bhava and hence all actions are guest-centric. We believe that it is important to review and respond to guests within 24 hours and taking feedback seriously is part of the Taj
culture," he says and adds another thing that works in the favour of the group is that the staff is empowered to take decisions. According to chef Krishnan, a hotel’s kitchen is the biggest show of impeccably synchronised team work. "It is important to nurture young talent and inculcating a sense of pride in whatever they cook. At the end of the day, your team must execute every plate as per the set standard. I believe in empowering my team to excel in guest service and meeting
their expectations, incentivising my servers and chefs, giving revenue goal to chefs in their KRA, making them a part of the decision making team, in other words, chef-driven F&B is an important factor to a successful F&B strategy," he believes.
The changing consumer preferences and innovative ways of marketing and distribution have been instrumental in bringing about rapid expansion in the food and beverage industry in India. The fact that India is primarily an agriculture-driven economy having abundant livestock and access to mechanised farming processes, has worked in its favour.
Food, its provenance and how it is cooked, matters to people, and hotels, with chefs in the lead, are learning that the type of food which they are associated with should be in keeping with the values and personality of their brand and that in this way, it will deliver more revenue.